Wind instrument



July 7, 1942i J. H. REED, sn

WIND INSTRUMENT Filed March 22, 1940 Patented July 7, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WIND INSTRUMENT James H. Reed, III, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Application March 22, 1940, Serial No. 325,363

4 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in wind instruments and more particularly to improvements in mechanism for controlling the pitch of wind instruments. While my invention may be advantageously used with many types of wind instruments, it is particularly advantageous when embodied in a trombone and, therefore, it will be described with reference thereto.

Heretofore two types of trombones have been made. In one type, the pitch of the trombone is varied by valves which lengthen the air path of the instrument by `deflecting the air column into additional lengths of tubing. In the second type of trombone, the pitch is controlled by a slide assembly which lengthens the air path of the instrument by extending the length of the tube.

Each type of trombone has advantages. The slide trombone has a better tone than the valve trombone and is, therefore, used for Inedolious passages of music. However, it cannot be used for playing fast or complicated passages of music because of the time required to extend the slide from one position to another in order to obtain different tones. A valve trombone can be used for fast or complicated passages because the valves can be opened and closed quickly with a correspondingly rapid change of pitch.

Therefore, in full orchestras it has been the custom to provide a brass section having both avoid the cost of two instruments, it has been proposed to provide a trombone having a separate valve assembly and a separate slide assembly. Means are provided for securing one or the other of these assemblies to the bell section of a trombone. Such a construction is shown in United States patent to Holton No. 932,704. This type of construction is not satisfactory, however, because of the considerable amount of time required to change from one means of pitch control to the other. A player, therefore, cannot play a continuous piece oi music and change the pitch control of the instrument in accordance with the particular passage of music being played.

In accordance with my invention, I provide a trombone which has both a valve and a slide pitch control built into the instrument. I provide mechanism for opening the valves by which the player can operate the valves with the same hand he uses for the slide, and without taking his hand oli the slide. This feature is of particular importance when used with trombones because a trombone player can use only one hand to vary the pitch of the instrument. His other hand is needed to hold the instrument in playing position.

Alternatively, I provide a valve assembly which can be inserted as a unit into the usual slide trombone to convert it into a combined slide and valve trombone.

In the accompanying drawing I have shown a present preferred embodiment of my invention in which:

Figure 1 is a broken front elevation View of a trombone embodying my invention;

Figure 2 is a broken rear elevation View oi" the trombone shown in Figure l; and

Figure 3 is a cross section along the lines III-III of Figure 1.

Figure l shows a trombone in the position in which it is held when being played. The trombone has a mouthpiece 4 opening into a slide assembly 5 which in turn is secured to a lower bell branch 5 by means of a receiver l. The slide assembly and the receiver are of usual construction. The lower bell branch S leads to an upper bell branch 8 and a bell 8a through a tuning slide 3. The branches are held together by braces lil.

rlhe slide assembly has a slide il, a slide lock I2, a water key I3 and a slide bar i4. The slide bar I4 connects the two legs (one leg only being shown in Figure i) of the slide Il and is held by the player when moving the slide in and out to vary the pitch of the instrument.

The valve assembly is connected only into the lower bell branch 6 so that if desired it may be built as a separate unit for installation into a conventional slide trombone. In the lower bell branch I provide rotary valves l5, I6 and Il of usual construction. The valves are normally set so as to permit air to pass directly through the lower bell branch 6 and out through the tuning slide 9, the upper bell branch 8 and bell 8a. When the valves are turned they deect the path of the air as it goes through the instrument into valve crooks I8, I9 and 2li. By deflecting the air into these valve crooks, the length of the air column in the instrument is increased and the pitch is lowered by an amount determined by the length of the valve crook. Thus turning the valve l5 lowers the pitch of the instrument a full tone, turning the valve i6 lowers the pitch one-half tone and turning the valve Il lowers the pitch a tone and a half.

The valves l5, I6 and Il are turned by keys 2|. These keys are positioned adjacent the slide bar I4 when the slide is in its innermost position on the slide assembly. Therefore, a player can keep his hand-hold on the slide bar and at the same time press the keys 2| with his iirst, second and third ngers to turn the valves I5, I6 and I'I. The valves and the slide are thus used alternately to vary the pitch of the instrument. When the player is playing an ordinary passage of music, he varies the pitch by using the slide and thus obtains the melodic tones which are possible with a slide instrument. When he comes to a fast or complicated passage, he moves the slide to its innermost, or closed, position and presses the keys to turn the valves. At the same time the slide is in position for use at any time Therefore, the player can change from the valves to the slide assembly simply by withdrawing his fingers from the keys 2 I.

The keys 2| are fastened on rods 22 by means of fixed collars 23. Pivot supports 24 are soldered or otherwise secured to the bell crooks I8 and 20 and have upturned flanges in which the rods 22 are rotatably pivoted about their longitudinal axes. Pressure on the keys 2 I, therefore, rotates the rods 22. By means of fixed collars 26, the rods 22 support levers 2I which extend through the openings between the valve crooks I8, I9 and 20 to a plane substantially parallel with the valve crooks and passing through the rear end of the valves I5, I B and I'I. Levers 28 are connected to the levers 2'I by means of joints 29 and to the peripheries of valve stems in the valves I5, I6 and I'I.

As stated, pressure on the keys 2| rotates the rods 22 which in turn raise the levers 2I. The levers 2'I pull the levers 28 so as to turn the valve stems 30. Rotation of the valves is limited to the proper positions for deecting the air column into the valve crooks or to permit the column to pass through the bell branch 6 by stops 3| fastened to the valve stem 3l] and pins 32 inserted into the outside casing 33 of the Valves. The valves are returned to their normal position when pressure on the keys 2| is released by springs 34 secured to the outer Casing of the valves and the joints 29.

A trombone embodying my invention enables a player to obtain all the advantages of both a slide and a valve trombone. These advantages are incorporated in one instrument and the cost of two instruments is thereby avoided. The

player can vary the pitch of the instrument by using either the valves or the slide. These controls can be used by the same hand. The player can change from one control to the other quickly and without removing his hand from the slide position.

The valve assembly is connected into only that part of the tubing which comprises the lower' bell branch of a slide trombone and the keys for operating the valves are supported on the valve crooks. Therefore, the valve assembly can be installed as a unit in any conventional slide trombone.

While I have illustrated a present preferred embodiment of my invention, it is to be understood that it is not limited thereto but may be otherwise variously embodied within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A musical instrument of the wind type comprising a slide assembly having two legs, a mouthpiece on the open end of one leg, a tube leading from the other leg of the assembly to a bell, a valve assembly connected into the tube and valve operating keys positioned adjacent the mouthpiece end of the slide assembly.

2. A musical instrument of the wind type having a tube, a mouthpiece at one end of the tube and a bell at the other end, a slide assembly and a valve assembly connected into the tube in such a manner that when the instrument is played an air column from the mouthpiece to the bell passes through both assemblies whichever assembly is used to control the tone.

3. A musical instrument of the wind type having a tube, a mouthpiece at one end of the tube and a bell at the other end, a slide tone control and a valve tone control, both controls being connected into the tube in such a manner that when the instrument is played an air column passes through both controls whichever control is used, and means for operating the valves of the valve control, said means being adjacent the closed position of the slide control.

4. A trombone having a slide assembly, a mouthpiece, a lower bell branch, an upper bell branch and a bell, the lower1 bell branch having a receiver for connecting the slide assembly to the lower bell branch, a valve assembly in the lower bell branch adjacent the receiver and valve operating keys positioned adjacent the closed position of the slide control.

JAMES H. REED, III. 

